February 2008

Leadership Lessons from Trees | If You Thought You Could Make a Difference (conclusion) | Attend a NALS Conference for Free!

There's No Better Time Than Now... | If Not You, Then Who? If Not Now, Then When? | Creating a Marketing Plan for Your Chapter

Attend a NALS Conference for FREE!
By:  Cathy Hankins, PP, PLS

FREE?  OK, so the whole trip may not be free, but your air fare could be free.  You're thinking this has to be a scam…airline tickets are not free.  Airline tickets can be free if you use frequent flyer miles.  Maybe you only fly once or twice a year and you think it will be another 10 years before you have enough miles.  That's not necessarily true.  There are many ways to earn miles.  You just need to read the fine print and do your homework to see what airline can offer you the best deal, and of course, you'll want to participate with an airline that flies out of your local airport.  If, for example, Aloha Airlines doesn't fly out of Baltimore, you'll probably want to find an airline that does.  The amount of miles you need for each airline will vary, but in most cases it's in the ballpark of 30,000+/- miles.  You earn miles from everyday activities like dining, lodging, shopping and car rental - all without ever leaving the ground.

Many airlines have "partners" and you can earn miles for Airline A when you fly on Airline B.  That gives you a little flexibility when you travel.  Almost every airline has specials from time to time which give you bonus miles if you book your travel during certain promotional periods, check in on line, book on line, etc.  Speaking of traveling, you can earn miles when you rent a car, stay at a hotel, and even when you go out to eat.

Do you have a bank credit card?  You can get up to 40,000 miles plus by opening or transferring to a credit card linked to your FF account.  All purchases you make using that card turn into miles you can use to fly to the next NALS conference. 

Did you know that you can get FF miles by paying for your utilities and other monthly bills on your credit card?  Are you currently paying your cell phone bill by using electronic bill pay or writing a check each month?  Pay by credit card and you get miles as an added bonus.  Use your credit card to make the payment, then use electronic bill pay to pay the credit card the same amount you just paid for your cell phone bill.  You pay the same amount, it's just a different way of paying the bill.  If you immediately make a payment on your credit card bill after you charge your monthly cell phone bill, it's paid off, no additional finance charges.   

Hungry?  With some frequent flyer programs, you can earn points for going out to dinner at your favorite restaurant right, or even ordering a pizza.  For example, with NWA, I get 30 miles when I order a $10 pizza. 

Shop til you drop!  Airlines usually award miles for every $1 you spend in their mall, however,  some even offer 3, 4 or 5 miles per dollar spent. You must "enter" the stores through the frequent flyer website, but if you're an internet shopper and willing to go through an extra door to get to your favorite store, you can earn miles by shopping online at stores like Coldwater Creek, QVC, Sears, Staples, Chadwick's, Land's End, Best Buy, and even Oriental Trading!  You can earn miles from buying everything from cookies and flowers to clothes to office supplies to golf clubs and computers. 

Got a few minutes to take a survey?  You can earn miles via e-mail, simply by answering a few surveys from time to time. Go to e-miles.com.  Simply sign up and before you know it, you'll be racking up the miles.  How much easier can it get? 

Do you rent your movies from Netflix?  Most airlines offer you a mileage bonus for signing up with Netflix and you'll earn miles every time your rent a DVD. 
Everyone has a digital camera and you earn miles each time you upload your photos and get the  printed with companies like Snapfish, Kodak or Shutterfly.  Just make sure you go through your frequent flyer program to place your order. 

Do you order your contact lenses by mail?  Check with your favorite frequent flyer program to see if you can earn miles when you buy your contacts.  It doesn't stop there.  If you use online drugstores for yourself or your or pet, you may also be able to add to your miles.  

When you sign up for frequent flyer program, most airlines will send you e-mails announcing special deals being offered to help you get earn more miles.  There are many sites on the internet that will also help you find ways to get free miles, such as http://www.freefrequentflyermiles.com/index.htm. 

Take some time to explore the frequent flyer program for your favorite airline and start accumulating miles today.  YOU can fly to the next NALS conference for FREE!